Monday, 9 February 2015

The Power of my Disability by Joy van der Stel

Joy van der Stel

‘An action will always cause reactions, so there is
responsibility involved. If you want something you have to do something to get
it’, is just one of the inspirational insights written by Joy van der Stel.

This book is a motivational life story about a woman born with cerebral palsy.
Joy came into this world in the era of the hippies, in 1975. She has been a
wheelchair user all her life, but that didn’t stop her from striving to do the
best she could.

She attended a boarding school at the age of 12, for
children with disabilities where she lived on and off. Joy was different from a
lot of the kids around, in that she was ambitious and considered a dreamer,
stubborn and cheeky. She was determined not to end up being cared for by others
her entire life.

From the boarding school she moved onto Hert Dorp (The
Village) which was a community built for those with disabilities. They provided
adapted housing and facilities for day to day life. Joy felt as though she was
losing touch with what she called the ‘Big World’, which to her is where she
belonged. The ‘Big World’ is the world that able bodied people live in. Those
with disabilities who were in boarding schools and communities such as Hert
Dorp, lived in what she referred to as the ‘Small World.’

She met and fell in love with her husband John, and together
they have a daughter. Joy went on to become a successful management coach, and
inspired people worldwide those abled bodied or not. Joy never gave up on her
dream of being independent and having the life she wanted. She taught others to
look past a wheelchair and ones disabilities, striving for more out of life.

This book was an easy read, and to the point. I would highly
recommend it to people who enjoy an inspirational story. This book is
anticipating your read here on the book shelf, at Epic Enabled Guest House.